Camelot Where You Are, #16

Chieftess didn't say much about her entry when she sent it in. But I know a few things about it because she posted it along with another photo on her blog, Mammoth Lakes Daily Photo, asking readers to help choose her entry by voting.

"...being in the mountains," says Chieftess, "there's not much in the way of castles, or knights, or shields, or really much of anything that could 

depict Camelot...But w-a-i-t!!! We've got majestic mountains!!!"

They sure do. Thank you, Chieftess.

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It's easy to enter the Camelot Where You Are photo contest, and anyone can do it. Entry details are here.

Send in a picture of your interpretation of Camelot where you are. It can be anything--a building, a toy, a work of nature--whatever your imagination tells you.

Then be sure to vote over the weekend for your favorite of this week's entries. Each weekly winner receives a free copy of Camelot & Vine upon publication this month. Publication day, whatever day it turns out to be, will be the final day for entries.

Theme Day: Animals

Today it's the CityDailyPhoto Theme Day and this month it's animals. One thing I love about Poland is its nature. The forests and fields are abundant with fauna. Quite often you can see deer, boar, frogs, squirrels and hares roaming the countryside. This image was taken some time ago about 10km north of Toruń in the Polish countryside.

Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Autumn Colours

It's one of the most beautiful times here in Poland, when the leaves turn that wonderful golden colour. Having said that, after spending a couple of hours clearing away the leaves from our garden...autumn can also be a pain!! ;-)

Flowers and Buildings

These beautiful flowers are to be found in Ul.Szeroka. Behind them you can see the rows of buildings of Ul.Mostowa and at the end - the bridge gate which used to connect to a bridge (hence the name) across the River Vistula.

Bee & Blossom

Here are some beautiful shots of a busy bee hard at work. Blossom is everywhere in Poland and the trees are looking their best. Wish we could say the same for us hayfever sufferers...the pollen count is very high at the moment. Cue: a lot of sneezing and itchy eyes!!

Spring Colours

Poland is looking its best at the moment. Spring is in the air...and the bees are out making honey!

Fields of Beauty

God...I love spring in Poland!!

Awaiting the Rain!

Was walking home this evening and almost splatted this poor frog! It was sitting on the pavement minding its business. Walked right past it and it didn't even flinch. Apparently, it was sitting waiting for the rain which is forecast this evening. Let's hope it moves away before some passer-by does accidently splat it!

Spring is in the Air (part 1)

The snow is officially gone, the blue skies are more apparent and the temperatures are much warmer (today it peaked at around 10C). However, the real sign that spring is on its way are when the flowers begin to bloom. And as captured this morning...TDP can say that spring is here to stay for sure!

Primavera

 It's spring. Around here, that means Primavera.

You're invited!

I'm told this pretty poster is untweetable. How's this?

Saturday, March 19th, 11am-? Farnsworth Park, Altadena
Bloggers, families, friends & groupies welcome!
bring a dish, utensils or paper goods to share
info: altadenablog@gmail.com
or call 626-791-5327

I imagine that's more than 140 characters. I'll let you pick what to abbreviate. We'll have plenty of characters at the picnic, no abbreviations necessary.

Please spread the word (there's a little button below). I hope to see you there.

Polish Wildlife

Today the sun is shining and there are clear, blue skies. So what better to do...than go for a walk in the Polish countryside. Flora and fauna (even in winter) is abundant here in Poland...and it wasn't long until we came across a herd of deer (8 in total!). The first picture looks as if it was taken in the mountains...but that hill behind the deer is actually a huge landfill (the result of the construction of the Sharp factory near Toruń).

The Darling Buds of January

With apologies to William Shakespeare:

Shall I compare this to a summer's day?
It is more comfy and more temperate:
Hot sun doth bake the darling buds of May,
And summer's heat hath all too long a date;
Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimmed;
And every day the heat doth make us pine,
When budgeting for air conditioning's slim:
But our delightful winter shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that green it hast,
Nor shall dearth brag we wand'rest in its shade,
Nor is infernal sun our doomed forecast.
   So long as I have camera and compute,
   So long lives this, I hope it's not too cute.

Release

Just a cloud. Just a treetop. Just a gray day. Just some birds.

The Assassination of Mr Mouse by the Cowardly Mr Cat!

Welcome to country life...and the sometimes cruel acts of nature. A mouse which had been rummaging around our cellar for the past few days (eating our potatoes and nibbling into our electrical wires) was caught at last. It was then let out for its run to freedom...but unfortunately landed straight into the paws and jaws of our waiting cat. Such is life I suppose! TDP was there to witness this incredible event.

The Big Freeze

It rained a little in the afternoon of Christmas Eve and then yesterday the temperatures dropped again...creating very dangerous icy conditions. Going to midnight mass on Christmas Eve was like having to cross an elongated ice rink! Aside from the dangers...the big freeze has also managed to conjure up some incredibly beautiful images...especially as all the trees and plants froze solid!

Polish Pheasants in the Winter Snow

The male pheasant scares one of his female companions
and shows who's the boss when it comes to food!

The male roams the snow looking for food

The 3 pheasants search for grain under a cherry tree

Video captured of the pheasants

POLISH NATURE ON YOUR DOORSTEP: I spotted these 3 pheasants this morning from my kitchen window. They were busy pecking at grain through the snow. These images/film was taken 3 hours and amazingly as I type the birds are STILL outside eating! Hungry indeed!!!

Misdemeanor

Woodpecker holes
a necklace of damage

orderly as beads.

Though they look like a row of bullet holes shot across a wall by one of Capone's gangsters, they're more decorative than detrimental. The tree doesn't notice. I almost didn't notice, either. That's how they get away with it.

We have at least five woodpecker gangs in southern California: the Downy Woodpeckers, Nuttall’s Woodpeckers, the Northern Flickers, the Acorn Woodpeckers and the Red-breasted Sapsuckers.

I couldn't pick this job's culprit out of a lineup but I'm going to take a chance and lay my money on the Acorn Woodpecker, a southern California native. I've seen those guys around and I wouldn't put it past 'em. They know where all the bugs are and this is their turf.

I stay out of their way. You've gotta be a tough little guy to make so many perfect little holes with your face.

Solar Salad

When I moved here from Illinois I thought of living in southern California as a vacation on another planet, especially when it came to plant life. Sometimes I still do. Click on this picture to enlarge it. These are bean pods.

The brownish stream on the lower right of this photo is bean pods. The branches above the stream show where the pods came from.

What kind of tree drops bean pods in purple, orange, yellow and green? Surely something not from our solar system.

This photo was taken awfully close to JPL. Maybe I shouldn't be wandering around over there.

Paper Trees

I've heard of paper being made from trees. These trees turn things around; they look like they're made of paper. The bark peels off them in great sheets, each tree is like a writing tablet.

What would I use to write with on such paper? Perhaps a bird would deign to perch on my finger and allow me to use its talon to scratch out a poem. A mockingbird if I'm feeling snarky. A crow if my mood is mean.

This is a great fantasy until I start thinking about how to make copies.

Woodland Retreat

Fancy a break away from the hustle and bustle of the big smoke? Then this new hotel deep in the Barbarka forest is a perfect place to relax. What's more...it's only 12km away from the hustle and bustle that is Toruń. Even if the hustle and bustle in Toruń is only really quite small. ;-)